英语版中秋节海报

Ancient moon worship

The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the worship of the moon celestial bodies. The worship of the sun and the moon is one of the important contents of primitive religion. In ancient China, there were religious rites and customs to sacrifice the sun and the moon. The two celestial bodies, the sun and the moon, are the representatives of Yin and Yang respectively. The normal operation of the sun and the moon is the guarantee of the harmony of the universe, so the ancients attached great importance to the sacrifice of the sun and the moon.

The Yin people had divided the sun and the moon into the East mother and the West mother. According to the time attribute of the sun and the moon, the Zhou Dynasty carried out the worship of the sun and the moon: "pretending to have great events will be in accordance with the time of the day, and putting (imitation) on the sun and the moon for the day and the night."

In the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period, the Sun and the moon were called the Eastern Emperor and the Western Queen. In Han Dynasty stone carvings in Yinan, the Queen Mother of the West and the King of the East sit on columns (some say Kunlun Mountain), and the Queen Mother of the West kneel on both sides of the Jade rabbit pounded medicine. It can be seen that Guo Pu's "Mountain and Sea Classic Tuzan" is based on the statement that "Kunlun Moon is fine, water is Lingfu", and the later moon god Chang 'e is evolved from the Queen Mother of the West (the earliest name is Changxi).

The royal monopoly on the right to worship the moon

In the Qin and Han Dynasties, sun and moon sacrifices were still imperial rituals. Since then, the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Sui and Tang Dynasties, as well as the Ming and Qing dynasties all have the rites of the autumn equinox. Now the Moon Altar Park in Beijing is the altar field of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

In ancient times, the sacrificial moon was included in the royal sacrificial ceremony and routine sacrificial ceremony as a seasonal sacrificial ceremony, and the folk lacked the news of the sacrificial moon. This may be related to ancient societies. It is related to theocrats control. After the "Jedi Tiantong", only the royal family can communicate with the heaven and earth gods representing Yin and Yang, and ordinary people naturally have no opportunity to worship. The moon is an external mysterious dominating force for the common people, unable to approach it and sacrifice to it. Therefore, the customs of folk moon worship in the Chinese cultural system were not recorded in the Han and Wei periods, let alone the appearance of festivals centered on moon worship.

The Mid-Autumn Festival eventually became a folk festival

After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, with the enrichment of astronomical knowledge and the progress of era culture, the sacred color of the moon obviously faded. At this time, the royal family gradually lost its exclusive authority over the sacrifice of the moon god. Although there was no Mid-Autumn Festival in the Tang Dynasty, the Mid-Autumn Festival has become a fashion for literates to enjoy the moon. In the mythology of the moon god inherited from ancient times, in addition to the lonely Chang 'e, toad and Jade Rabbit, Wu Gang was banished to the moon palace. The moon god has evolved from the original god of the universe to a deity with Taoist color.

The Mid-Autumn Festival of the Song Dynasty has become a folk festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival has a day off, and the moon is the center. The Mid-Autumn night of the Song Dynasty was a sleepless night, and officials in charge of public security also lifted the routine curfew.

After the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the practical utilitarian factors in social life became prominent, and the secular interest became stronger in the age period. The lyrical and magical literator tradition centered on "enjoying the moon" is weakened, and the utilitarianism worship, prayer and secular emotions and wishes constitute the main form of the common people's Mid-Autumn Festival, and the Mid-Autumn Festival has become an important node in people's time and life.

古老的月亮崇拜

中秋节起源于人们对月亮天体的崇拜。日月崇拜是原始宗教的重要内容之一，中国古代很早就有祭祀日月的宗教礼俗。日月这两大天体，分别为阴阳的代表，日月的正常运行是宇宙和谐的保证，因此古人很重视对日月的祭祀。

殷人已将日月分称东母与西母，周代依据日月的时间属性行朝日夕月的祭礼：“故作大事必顺天时，为朝夕必放（仿）于日月。”

春秋战国时日月神分别称为东皇公、西王母。沂南汉画像石中西王母与东王公分坐在柱状物上（有说是昆仑山），西王母两旁跪有捣药的玉兔。由此可知，郭璞《山海经图赞》“昆仑月精，水之灵府”的说法言之有据，后世的月神嫦娥即由西王母（最早名常羲）演变而来。

皇家垄断了祭月权

秦汉时期，日月祭祀仍为皇家礼制。此后北魏、隋唐以致明清历代都有秋分祭月的礼仪。现在北京的月坛公园就是明清祭月的坛场。

祭月在上古作为季节祭祀仪式列入皇家祀典、例行祭祀后，民间缺少了祭月的消息。这可能与古代社会的.神权控制有关，在“绝地天通”之后，像日月这样的代表阴阳的天地大神，只有王家才能与之沟通，一般百姓自然是无缘祭享的。月亮对于平民来说，是一种外在的神秘的支配力量，无法接近它，祭祀它。因此华夏文化系统内民间祭月的习俗，在汉魏时期不见著录，更不用说出现以拜月为中心的节日。

中秋节最终成民俗节日

隋唐以后，随着天文知识的丰富与时代文化的进步，月亮的神圣色彩明显消褪。这时皇家也逐渐失去了对月神祭祀的独占权威。唐朝虽没有中秋节日，但中秋赏月玩月已成为文人的时尚。古代传承下来的有关月神的神话，月宫中除了寂寞的嫦娥、蟾蜍、玉兔外，又添了一位被贬谪来的吴刚。月神已由原始的宇宙主神演化为具有道教色彩的神仙。

宋代中秋节已成为民俗节日，中秋放假一日，以赏月为中心。宋代中秋夜是不眠之夜，主管治安的官员还取消例行的宵禁。

明清之后，社会生活中现实的功利因素突出，岁时节日中世俗的情趣愈益浓厚。以“赏月”为中心的抒情性与神话性的文人传统减弱，功利性的祭拜、祈求与世俗的情感、愿望构成普通民众中秋节俗的主要形态，中秋成为民众时间生活中的重要节点。